Springfield daily republic. [volume] (Springfield, O. [Ohio]) 1887-1888, 1887-12-27
DOGS AND SLEDGES.
HOW THE ESKIMO DRIVER MAN.
AGES HIS TEAM OF DOGS.

The Long Si~ds cf the Kinn~pat"os-Pst-
terms In U.e by the Traders Of Kan
chatka and AIasks--Norihern siberia.
The sscllintock Model.
Eskimo dogs have each a harness with
loops tl.at pass around the neck and un-
der each leg, uniting on the back and
fastened 10 hong trace Of sealsk in about
a third Of AN inch wide. The traces are
of various lengths. 81 that when hitched
! to the sled the dogs can spread out like .
fan. They are guided by the voice OF tho
, driver, whose commands are enforced
with a whip. the handle Of which is about
eighteen inches in length, aud the lash
from eighteen to thirty feet long The
dogs in Siberia are harnesset I, pairs on
eisher side of a long line OF walrus skin
and are trained to obey the drivers voice.
The driver controls the movements OF the
sled with a stout stick shod with iron,
n hich he uses as q brake.
In crossing rough ice tn" Kinnepatoo
Eskimos, of Hudson Bay, use a sled about
eighteen inches wide and from thirty TO
forty feet long. This is intended to ride
across the hummocks with much stead
ier motion than short sled. which is
constantly pitching about, and, under such
circumstances very hard TO draw and ex-
tremely difficult to handle. The long
sleds Of the Kinnepatoos glide very
smoothly and rapidly over rough ice, and
are easily maraged. They arc male with
! solid plank runners, sometimes spiiced to
secure greater length, and are shod with
moss and iced.
IN SIBERIA AND ALASKA.
The Russian traders and settlers in
Kamtchatka and Alaska have several pat
terms Of sleds. The one upon which heavy
loads are drawn is u trestle~ork VI strong
wood lashed with rawhidc thongs. 1t is
very light. runs smoothly and is not easily
broken. At Petropauiovski, In KANT
chatka, also procured small sled OF
hasketwork, which was made somewhat
in the shape Of large saddle. with very
high poRmel and Group II is designed TO
carry one person only, who ats astride IL
II and rests his feet on the runners. This
can he used only for light work and On
short rapid Journeys, for it has no place
wherein to carry any load.
The sled used by the tribes In Northern
| Siberia combines the excellencies of the
long sled Of the Kinnepatoos, the trestle-
WI N stu VI Nu>Sf.sh suV
McClintock sled. used by mostly all Bit
! ish explorers II Il made with ihin. broad
runners 81 wood shod with strips u jaw
bone Of the whale or sort Of hard drift
wood found oa the northeastern coast OF
Siberia. The bed or platform is sup
ported by uprights let into and dashed to
runners.
THE M'CLINToCK SLED.
- |, 40
plorers OF Arctic North America is known
rs .'the McClintock Sled" and was de-
signed aud used by Admiral Sir Leopold
McClintock. of the Royal navy, OH all his
Arctic iourneyS II Is made with runners
Of hard wood. with upriyhts and cross.
pieces of the same material mOrtised and
riSetetl. and the runners, shed with hoop
| iron. are bent up 'front.' and rear 50 that
the sled can he drawn equally well with
either end in front. My experience with
sleds OF this pattern has been that though,
perhaps. excellent where men are used in
the harness, they are not good dog sletls.
They are also liable to break where the
lateral strain is great on the parts that are
are mortised together. therefore their use
| is not advisable ON long journeys.
Besides the various sleds already de-
bear and seal skins temporarily used for
that purpose, and after the snow melted
and the foods subsided In Central Siberia,
| have also enjoyed rest for my weary
| limbs on heavy sleds drawn by bulls over
the muddy and slippery land With such
large variety to choose from. have no
hesitation in expressing my unqualified
preference for all purposes of hard work
in the land of ice and snow for the
| Tchouktchis' driftwood s.cds. both large
and small. which combine The greatest
amount of strength and elasticity with
the least weight, while at the same time
they are less likely 10 be broken. and
| when broken, more readily repaired than
any others | have used or seen. The
model can scarcely be improved npon, but
the driftwood used by those poor sarages
in the absence Of other material might
advantageously be replaced with tough
young hickory or other woods from moro
| temperate climates William II. Glider,
U. 8. n, in The Century.